Atlantic Magazine Compares Violent Democrat Who Caned Senator in 1856 to Trump

Newsbusters ^ | June 10, 2026 | P.J. Gladnick

[PJ-Comix]

The foul odor of TDS is definitely in the air when the editor of the Washington Monthly, published on the pages of Friday's Atlantic magazine website, can somehow connect the actions of an enraged Democrat congressman in 1856 caning anti-slavery Republican Senator Charles Sumner on the floor of the Senate to President Donald Trump.

The author of the hit piece incorporating an incident from a couple of centuries ago is careful to discount the idea of making historical comparisons but that was exactly what Rob Wolfe did in "The Vicious Beating That Reshaped America."

[PJ-Comix]

All those assassination attempts upon Trump? Blame Trump according to the Atlantic magazine.

[humblegunner]

Thank you, Peejay.

What a good job you've done here.

[Publius]

Sumner's language was rash and intemperate, and Sen. Stephen Douglas (D-IL) said "some damn fool is going to take a shot at him" for that.

Brooks was tempted to challenge Sumner to a dual, but after checking in with another Southerner, he came to understand that a challenge could only go to an equal, a gentleman. As Brooks saw it, Sumner by his language was not a gentleman. Thus the caning.

[Steely Tom]

“The Civil War” is a BS name. Total BS.

It was the First Democrat vs. Republican War.

[wardaddy]

Improving from being Hitler !

[wardaddy]

Very different parties from today

[Steely Tom]

Very different parties from today

Yeah, thanks to LBJ.

[jmaroneps37]

The Atlantic should know better then this because Democrat history books are not allow to go back before 1870. If they did they would have to mention slavery and which party kept slaves and which.party fought and died to end slavery.

[Albion Wilde]

The Atlantic must be reading my posts. I posted this graphic on 5/13/26 here:

[Albion Wilde]

[Civil War]: "It was the First Democrat vs. Republican War."

Very different parties from today

Not too sure about that...

[cowboyusa]

South Carolina, the chief troublemaker.

[wardaddy]

Pity

Cause I sure as hell am
The abolitionist zealots were the equivalent of today’s woke

And like today they were just the tools not the real power people

[unclebankster]

South Carolina, the chief troublemaker.

*****************************

Don’t forget Massachusetts, another chief troublemaker.

“It Takes Two to Tango.”

[cowboyusa]

Yes

[SunkenCiv]

[the OlLine Rebel]

No, thanks to Wilson.

And not far off to blame Ted Roosevelt, another Progressive. Ted proved Repubs had some very “communist” ideas in the past, but Wilson took it and got the prize for being the turning point of the Dems to communist with his push for income tax and Senate being via popular vote.

[the OlLine Rebel]

Again the simplistic and errant version of events.

[jmcenanly]

A Democrat Congressman who waves a cane in a threatening manner? You must be thinking of someone else.

[Paisan]

Don’t forget Massachusetts, another chief troublemaker.

My research suggests that Mr. Sumner had implied that Mr. Brooks had engaged in immoral congress with some of his female slaves...

Fightin’ words to any Southern gentleman.

Making Mr. Brooks the recipient of a wealth of gutta percha canes and admonishments to “Hit ‘im again Preston “

[Steely Tom]

You'll have to excuse my ignorance, but my memory doesn't go back to Wilson. I mean, I know he was (what we would call today) a leftist, and that he was the 13th president of Princeton University. But I don't know much more about him than that.

Was he the original "new world order" president? Didn't FDR help with that?